A biography for Manmohan Singhhasn’t been written yet.
“Nobody should be allowed to tinker with democracy. We will not discontinue the good works of the past government.”
“Protectionism has to be avoided. Protectionism is not only on goods but also in the area of services. Financial protectionism is also bad and should be avoided.”
“We are a coalition government, and that limits our options in some ways. Privatization happens to be one such area.”
“We are a mixed economy. We will remain a mixed economy. The public and private sector will continue to play a very important role. The private sector in our country has very ample scope and I am confident that India's entrepreneurs have the capacity, and the will to rise to the occasion.”
“Every day, the Prime Minister is a 24-hour servant of the people of India.”
“We got government off the backs of the people of India, particularly off the backs of India's entrepreneurs. We introduced more competition, both internal competition and external competition. We simplified and rationalized the tax system. We made risk-taking much more attractive.”
“Yes, I think India's economy always has been a mixed economy, and by Western standards we are much more of a market economy than a public sector-driven economy.”
“I have always regarded nonalignment as a statement that India's policies - foreign policy - will be guided by what I describe as 'enlightened national interest.' That means we will make judgments on an independent basis with the sole concern being what is enlightened India's national interest.”
“If you have a rigidly controlled economy, cut off from the rest of the world by infinite protection, nobody has any incentive to increase productivity and to bring new ideas.”
“Whatever your views on Pakistan, our effort was that we have to engage Pakistan. They are our neighbours. We can choose our friends, but we cannot choose our neighbours.”
“The Chinese have certain advantages. The fact that it's a single party government. But I do believe in the long run the fact that India is a functioning democracy committed to the rule of law. Our system is slow to move but I'm confident that once decisions are taken they are going to be far more durable.”
“Capitalism historically has been a very dynamic force, and behind that force is technical progress, innovation, new ideas, new products, new technologies, and new methods of managing teams.”
“Nepal is our closest neighbour, and we must make every effort to ensure that, as a small neighbour, we attend to their perceptions. Even when they are wrong, we have an obligation to create an environment in which the common people in Nepal feel that in India they have a great friend.”
“Our foreign-exchange reserves when I took over were no more than a billion dollars; that is, roughly equal to two weeks' imports.”
“It is a struggle for the minds of the people... No cause justifies recourse to terrorism.”
“Certainly, I cannot say that my government's relationship with Pakistan was free of problems. I think the control of terror is our primary concern. And Pakistan made promises it didn't keep.”
“One can dismiss the Prime Minister of India most easily. All that is necessary is for Parliament to pass a vote of no-confidence.”
“We all know the epicentre of terrorism in the world today is Pakistan. The world community has to come to grips with this harsh reality.”
“Together with international unity and resolve we can meet the challenge of this global scourge and work to bring about an international law of zero tolerance for terrorism.”
“In matters of state, one has to be full of sentiments, but one can never be sentimental.”